The Emancipation Proclamation, which took effect on January 1, 1863, established the United States Colored Troops (USCT). And although it took several months to create, enlist and train these units, these measures eventually resulted in the recruitment of over 170,000 Black men, many former slaves, in the defense of the country. Over 100 of these […]

The Battle of Gettysburg and the Gettysburg Address have been mentioned in countless movies, T.V. shows, and documentaries. Gettysburg itself has been the setting of several movies over the years. Several actors and actresses have strong ties to the Gettysburg area. Join historian Timothy H. Smith as he explains Hollywood’s ties to Gettysburg and shows […]

Drawing inspiration from Lt. William H. Pohlman’s reported final words—“Cease firing”—writer Kellie Gormly spent years researching the history of The Swope Manor, a Gettysburg home that sheltered the town’s wealthiest family and served as the place where Pohlman died in 1863 after being wounded during Pickett’s Charge. Her work culminated in the book Cease Firing! […]

Drawing inspiration from Lt. William H. Pohlman’s reported final words—“Cease firing”—writer Kellie Gormly spent years researching the history of The Swope Manor, a Gettysburg home that sheltered the town’s wealthiest family and served as the place where Pohlman died in 1863 after being wounded during Pickett’s Charge. Her work culminated in the book Cease Firing! […]

On the afternoon of June 24, 1863, 700 men of the 26th Pennsylvania Emergency Regiment were steaming towards Gettysburg. They had been ordered to the mountains west of Gettysburg as a blocking force against a possible Rebel Invasion of the county. As luck would have it, an elderly woman was driving her cow on a […]